As the marketing manager, you have spent a considerable amount of time drafting and planning your next marketing campaign, it is now ready to go. What is your next step? You sit down with your colleague at the contact center to break down the brief. One lingering question on your mind is “will this yield my desired results?” The determining factor in your results is the type of agents assigned to your campaign.
Here is a list of the key areas of the importance we consider when placing the right agents for your unique campaign.
1. Key Competencies
How competent an agent is directly affects their job performance because this reflects their level of knowledge, skills, and ability to handle the campaign. Do they have knowledge of the company’s offerings? How proficient are they with the contact center tools? What outstanding skills do they have? How capable are they of handling different types of customers?
For example, you work for a large clothing Retail Company and you’re running a “get a 20% discount on every referral” campaign. The key competency this sales agent must have is the ability to convince the customer to buy and refer someone. On the other hand, a key competency of a service agent is excellent customer experience and the ability to actively listen to what the customer is saying.
The aim is to have agents with the right competencies to achieve your campaign objectives with ease. Without competent agents, the campaign is as good as dead and a waste of valuable resources.
2. Personality type
Personality is something that is unique to each and every one of us. Finding the right combination and fit for each campaign is something that has to be done for each campaign the contact center takes on. Some individuals are may have more people skills, while others result/numbers oriented. An agent’s personality type plays a huge role in how effective they will be at a particular campaign.
For example, the way a people-oriented agent will handle customer objections is different from the way a numbers-oriented one will. The first agent will go the extra mile to see that the customer’s issue is resolved and that the customer is fully satisfied; the second agent will naturally count that as a lost sale and move on to the next contact.
Personality type also shapes the agent’s internal attitudes towards their roles. A positive attitude is vital when it comes to having a successful agent. Finding and hiring agents that have that contagiously positive attitude will not only help that agent succeed, but it could also play a helping hand in the entire campaign’s performance. Agents are very aware of the overall mood and environment on the campaign floor so having that extra boost that a single agent can generate can truly make a difference, not only for the agents on the floor but also for the customers on the other end of the interaction.
The important thing is to uncover the agent’s personalities during the hiring process and place them in the right department where they will thrive and exceed performance expectations.
3. Motivational fit
Personal motivators vary from one person to the other but they generally follow Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and can be summarized in three categories.
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- Personal interest: Does the company offer what the person wants in order to achieve their career objectives? For example, if a person has loved working in a high-energy, fast-paced outbound call center, will they enjoy working in an inbound center?
- Job fit: Do the job roles and responsibilities motivate the person? Is there enough room to be creative in their delivery? Does the working relationship with the immediate boss, hinder or encourage excellent delivery? Is the work environment helpful?
- Culture fit: Does the culture of the company and contact center equal the individual’s priorities and interests? This includes the type of people who work there, how the center management leads, company values, and company commitment to employee development and training.
In conclusion, the above considerations; competencies, personality, and motivational fit are all related in various ways. However, an established contact center comes in handy because we are able to give you the right people who will guarantee results. Having the right people in the right position at the right time is critical to the success of your campaign.
This blog was first published on Linkedin
